New surrender policy for Maoists on anvil: Chhattisgarh CM
Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Monday said his government will soon come up with a surrender policy.
As a final offer for Maoists to shun violence and join the mainstream, Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Monday said his government will soon come up with a surrender policy by incorporating best practices implemented by different states.
In the proposed policy, Sai said, surrendered Maoists will be housed together in a colony under central schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. He added that one of his deputies has visited various states, including Assam, to learn about their surrender policies.
“All surrendered Maoists could be housed together in such a colony, which could be in the district headquarters. They will be provided security in that place. It is still in a policy state. Our deputy CM is visiting different states to study their surrender policy and incorporate the best practises. He has already been to Assam,” Sai said. “They (surrendered Maoists) will be given jobs and training once the policy is introduced. We urge Maoists to join mainstream otherwise our forces from both Centre and state are fully prepared on the ground.”
HT had first reported about the state government’s plan to come up with a new surrender policy.
Sai — who was in Delhi to attend a meeting chaired by Union home minister Amit Shah to review the security situation in left-wing extremism (LWE)-affected regions — said that while the anti-Maoist operations have been intensified, the government is also at work to break the finances of the insurgent groups in the state.
“We are working to ensure that the money for tendu leaves is deposited directly into the bank accounts of the citizens. There are 13 lakh (1.3 million) people engaged in collecting tendu leaves. This will put an end to the illegal taxes that are levied on the poor people. We are trying to start banks in rural areas so that the money can be directly deposited to their accounts,” he said, adding the Centre is sending at least four more battalions of central armed paramilitary forces to the state.
His remarks come days after at least 31 Maoists were gunned down by security forces in Chhattisgarh on October 5 in one of the most successful operations against them in recent times.
The Union government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to end Maoism by March 31, 2026. Keeping in line with the Centre’s aim, the aggression against Maoists groups has been intensified. So far, 194 Maoists have been killed this year, a record high in the last two decades, while 742 insurgents have surrendered.
Security officials describe the current phase as the final part of the war against LWE, which is being fought in areas that Maoists believed were their strongholds. Earlier this year, the CRPF opened a camp in Puvarti village, which is home to top Maoist commander Hidma. The village was not accessed by security forces in the last three decades.
“The Centre is giving four more battalions to the state. 32 camps across 96 villages have been opened. In all these villages, the government is working to build roads, get electricity, ration cards, Ayushman cards etc. More camps will be opened,” the CM said, adding he also met PM Modi and gave updates about the anti-Maoist operations and development in Chhattisgarh.